VINELAND, N.J. – Collectors in a quest to find rare antique toys in superior condition struck gold at Bertoia’s Nov. 11-12 Toys on World Tour auction, which realized $1,550,000 (inclusive of 15% buyer’s premium). The 1,502-lot sale was very well attended, with phone bidders keeping Bertoia’s staff members constantly engaged. Internet bidding played a major role in the auction’s success, as well. The daily average of purchases attributable to online buyers was 27.4%.

Cast-iron toys proved to be a category with resiliency, as evidenced by the setting of several world auction records. “I would say that at this auction cast iron was not only back, but back to the future. That’s how strong it was,” said Bertoia Auctions associate Rich Bertoia. “The Donald Kaufman auction series, which grossed over twelve million dollars, seems to have reignited the fever of collecting cast iron. We even saw a few new players at the sale.”

A circa-1932 Arcade cast-iron rendition of a Mack dump truck in bright red and yellow, came with provenance from the respected Larry Sieber collection, Considered the finest known specimen of its type, the 9-inch, near-mint truck claimed the top spot in its category at $17,250.

Having passed through Bertoia’s gallery before, during the Kaufman series, a 17-inch Kenton cast-iron “Speed” truck painted green with a stake-side open body toppled its previous auction price to sell for $12,650 against an estimate of $6,000-$7,500. “There were many other pieces from both the Don Kaufman and Dick Ford collections that followed that same pattern, selling for much more than they had in recent auctions. They still had their previous Bertoia tags on them,” Rich Bertoia noted.

Another surprise was the buoyant prices achieved by German clockwork tin boats. “Normally in a single auction we don’t get as many all-original or nearly all-original boats of such outstanding quality, but it happened this time,” said Bertoia.

An exceptionally well-scaled Marklin “Avalanche” painted in light blue and with all four lifeboats, two stacks, flags and other original accessories had no trouble sailing to $41,400 against an estimate of $20,000-$22,000. Other big winners by Marklin included a “Puritan” oceanliner, $23,000; “Columbia” battleship (partially restored), $18,400; and 1930s “Freya” battleship, $17,250 against an estimate of $8,000-$10,000.

Additional European tin toys that won favor with bidders included a Hans Eberl two-seat clockwork tourer with turbaned driver, clown passengers, and Punch & Judy and other clown images lithographed on its exterior panels. Estimated at $600-$750, the vibrantly colorful open car made $10,925. An earlier production dating to around 1900, a Guntherman 12-inch vis-à-vis with hand-painted driver figure surpassed its estimate to reach $5,175.

“What was interesting about the European toys is that there were many Europeans on the phones who were extremely competitive but could not win against bidders in the room. It seemed that the estimates didn’t matter,” said Bertoia.

Over the past decade, the market for early American tin toys has confirmed that demand continues to exceed supply for rare and fine examples. A nice selection of this specialty was included in Bertoia’s sale, with the leading piece being an extremely rare Ives Man on Rocking Horse, ex Tom Anderson collection, that raced past its $6,000-$8,000 estimate to cross the finish line at $39,100.

Of the collection of biscuit tins offered, “those in great condition brought great money,” Bertoia said. A circa-1920 W. Crawford & Sons “Fire Brigade” tin – one of the featured items on Bertoia’s auction catalog cover – benefited from crossover bidding from firefighting fans and commanded $6,900 (est. $1,000-$1,200). One of only two or three known examples of a tin pram with baby and golliwog lithographed on its lid was a runaway favorite and earned $6,325 against an estimate of $700-$900.

Almost every sale conducted by Bertoia’s features an array of excellent-quality cast-iron doorstops. The Nov. 11-12 offering included a charming rarity: a snow-capped yellow cottage with hand painting reminiscent of Grandma Moses’ primitive New England style. The doorstop was a book example and had been entered in the sale with a $1,200-$1,600 estimate. “Apparently there were many bidders who wanted this doorstop for their collections. It sold for $5,175,” said Bertoia Auctions’ owner Jeanne Bertoia, who is, herself, a renowned expert and author on the subject of antique doorstops.

Other sale highlights included an Asahi 1962 Chrysler Imperial tin car in rich cobalt blue, $6,900; and a 30-inch-tall, signed Vichy automaton of a beautiful lady with hand mirror. Superbly modeled and painted, with a Jumeau bisque head accented by pearl “drop” earrings, the elegantly dressed automaton soared to $18,400 against an estimate of $6,000-$9,000.

Figural foot-shape Halloween lantern, $4,025. Bertoia Auctions image.

The much-anticipated selection of Christmas antiques attracted bidders across the board, but most especially toward the rarely seen antiques. “Collectors are waiting for the great things to come out, and they’ll pay the price to get them,” said Rich Bertoia.

The Christmas section was led by a late-19th-century chalkware belsnickle, 22 inches tall, painted in brown and red with holly and berries on the hood of its knee-length coat. Estimated at $10,000-$12,000, it was pushed competitively to $18,400.

Bertoia’s Spring Auction will be held March 23-24, 2012 and will feature doorstops from the Chuck and Barbara Cook collection, comic character toys from the Ronnie Rosen collection, cast-iron rarities from a private collection, Lehmann and Martin windups, steam engines and many other choice pieces. For additional information call 856-692-8697, e-mail toys@bertoiaauctions.com, or visit www.bertoiaauctions.com.

DENVER, Pa. – With the widely publicized $2.1 million auction price achieved recently by a rare copy of Action Comics No. 1, some investors are contemplating a shift of focus from gold and silver to paper. Vintage comic books – once considered a niche collectable for nostalgic boomers – have become a potent alternative to stocks and bonds. In recognizing this trend, Morphy Auctions recently forged an alliance with the specialist company Sparkle City Comics, of North Bergen, New Jersey.

Morphy’s, with the expert oversight of Sparkle City, will launch its new Comic Book division during a Feb. 9-11 Toys & Advertising sale that features 200 prized comics from an original-owner collection. The top lot, a 1963 The AmazingSpider-Man No. 1 in 8.5 condition, is expected to realize $25,000-$30,000. Other anticipated top lots include a 1963 X-Men No. 1 and a 1963 Tales of Suspense No. 39 featuring the first appearance of Iron Man.

The association between Morphy’s and Sparkle City came about when the latter company’s principal, Brian Schutzer, purchased $40,000 worth of comics in a previous Morphy’s sale.

“Brian called me after the sale to finalize his purchase, and during our discussion he suggested that we consider building a relationship,” Morphy Auctions’ CEO Dan Morphy recalled. “I had been wanting to launch a comic book division in-house, and during that conversation with Brian, it became clear to me that the smartest and most direct path to our goal would be a collaboration with Sparkle City. They’re an energetic, extremely knowledgeable company with a tremendous database of comic book buyers.”

“On the other side of the coin, Morphy’s has the physical gallery and marketing team to promote and produce successful live sales,” Morphy continued. “It’s an exciting combination that could prove very successful, given collectors’ insatiable interest in rare comics.”

Morphy’s first auction dedicated exclusively to comic books will be a 700 to 800-lot event held either in April or May. “My goal is to have two, if not three, sales per year devoted exclusively to vintage comic books and also original comic book art, a subcategory that has a long collecting arc ahead of it,” Morphy said.

Swann Galleries’ auction of Important Photobooks & Photographs on Tuesday, December 13 features beautiful and poignant images and books ranging from the earliest photographs to works by artists living and working today.

Highlights include:

Among the photobooks, Edwin Hale Lincoln’s lavishly illustrated Wild Flowers of New England Photographed from Nature, a complete set of 8 volumes with 400 platinum prints, one of perhaps 50 copies of the self-published work, 1910-14 (detail top right).

William Eggleston’s 2 1/4, a limited-edition book featuring the artist’s early color photographs, with a signed print. One of 50 copies, 1999.

A large selection of New York City photographs including Harry Callahan’s Untitled (World Trade Center), a silver print, 1974.

The Milhous Museum, compiled over the past fifty years by brothers Bob and Paul Milhous, focuses on rare and important automobiles, mechanical music, and collectibles, boasting one of the world’s most notable assemblies of orchestrions, fair, dance and theater organs. RM Auctions, in association with Sotheby’s, is delighted to offer the Milhous Collection in situ at auction on February 24-25, 2012.

The collection began in 1959 with Paul’s purchase of a player piano; meanwhile Bob honed his interest in desirable motor cars. His first purchase was a 1934 Packard Eight Convertible Victoria, which won awards at all major concours events including ‘Best of Show’ at the prestigious 1976 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Since then, they have accumulated over 30 fine automobiles – from high-horsepower Brass era cars to coachbuilt classics and Indianapolis racing cars – and over 100 mechanical musical instruments.

The latter group is highlighted by the renowned Weber Maesto orchestrion, an exceptionally large instrument replete with a Feurich piano, xylophone, drums, traps, and endless pipes (est. $900,000 – $1,200,000). The Weber Maesto is also very rare, with only seven known to exist, four of which are in museums. Perhaps one of the most decoratively appealing and whimsical of the instruments is the Ruth Style 32-B Fair Organ by A. Ruth & Söhne of Germany, with carvings of animated flute and guitar players, bell ringers, a bandleader, swans, satyrs, cherubs and angels playing herald trumpets (est. $1,000,000 – $1,200,000).

Central to the collection is the Illions-style carousel built over the course of four years for the Milhous Collection and featuring 44 intricate animal figures carved by hand from historically accurate designs ($1,000,000 – $1,500,000). An extensive assortment of petroliana, neon and porcelain signs and rare and unique gasoline-powered tether cars and models adds to the collection’s variety. Furthermore, the Museum features decorative pieces from Louis Icart, Alphonse Mucha, and Tiffany & Co., and ornate hall clocks, tower clocks and street clocks from makers like Seth Thomas & Howard and Black, Starr & Frost.

RM Auctions, in association with Sotheby’s, looks forward to offering the contents of the museum on premises this February. For more information, please visit www.rmauctions.com/milhous.

DENVER, Pa. – Two of America’s most popular collecting categories – coins and sports memorabilia – will join forces for an outstanding 866-lot auction on Dec. 17 at Morphy’s.

“Certain types of collectibles never seem to lose favor,” said Morphy’s CEO, Dan Morphy. “Coins have been a favorite with collectors and investors for many generations, and important memorabilia from professional and collegiate sports just keep on setting new records at auction. We decided to put the two categories together for a holiday auction that many collectors could enjoy.”

The Dec. 17 auction starts with a collection of more than 320 lots of silver and gold coins, and currency. The centerpiece of the numismatic offering is an extremely rare Panama-Pacific International Exposition octagonal $50 gold coin that was struck in 1915. Graded MS65 (mint state) by PCGS, the coin is expected to make $120,000-$150,000.

There’s quite a story behind the Panama-Pacific coins, and it’s entwined in the lore of one of America’s greatest cities: San Francisco. Six years after the devastating earthquake of 1906, the “City by the Bay” was in dire need of an economic boost. It came in the form of the 1915 World’s Fair, also known as the Panama-Pacific International Exposition. Many cities had vied for the right to host the event, with New Orleans being one of the favored contenders. After an intense advertising and lobbying campaign, however, President Taft proclaimed earthquake-ravaged San Francisco as the official host city.

The fairgrounds and buildings took three years to construct, providing much-needed jobs for out-of-work San Franciscans. The project sparked a revitalization that changed San Francisco forever, putting it on the map as one of America’s greatest and most cultured cities.

The Panama-Pacific International Exposition ran from Feb. 20 through Dec. 4, 1915, and to commemorate the fair, the United States Government authorized the San Francisco Mint to issue a $50 gold coin depicting Balboa on the obverse and an owl encircled by dolphins on verso.

“Very few of these coins were made, and an example graded this high – a ‘70’ is perfect and impossible to find – is very exciting to collectors. Today, it’s common for commemorative coins to be issued, but that wasn’t the case back then,” said Dr. John Morphy, Head of Acquisitions & Appraisals for Morphy Auctions.

In total, more than a million dollars worth of gold and silver coins will be auctioned in Morphy’s Dec. 17 sale. Another rarity that’s expected to stir interest amongst bidders is a 2011 Chinese panda gold coin, one of only 300 made, which weighs one kilo (2.23 lbs.) and is valued at $130,000-$150,000.

The second half of the Dec. 17 session is devoted to sports memorabilia. There are early baseball and football buttons, pennants and some bobbing-head dolls, including Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle and Roberto Clemente. Hartland collectors will find themselves spoiled for choice with the array of boxed figures that includes Babe Ruth, Yogi Berra, Don Drysdale, John Arnett and others. Some non-sport figures, such as cowboy and historical Hartlands in original boxes, will join their sports counterparts.

Sporting equipment is abundant and includes some great baseball gloves in scarce original boxes, plus autographed game-used and store-model baseball bats. One of the highlights of the sale is an unusual grouping of approximately 50 Mickey Mantle autographed items, some limited edition and most originating from Mickey Mantle’s girlfriend Greer Johnson, and Mantle’s personal attorney. The autographed Mantle items include framed prints, gloves, bats, balls and his personal golf jacket.

Boxing fans should get their bidding cards ready for a pair of autographed Muhammad Ali Everlast boxing trunks and autographed lace-up boxing shoes. These extremely desirable items were worn by the legendary Ali and donated to a public auction 30+ years ago. The shoes are inscribed in blue pen: “From Muhammad Ali June 5-80 The Greatest Boxer of All Times.”

Sports-related ephemera will also make an appearance in the sale in the form of a personal collection of the historical publication “The Sporting News.” There are several hundred issues with cover dates ranging from the 1930s through the 1980s. In some cases, there are runs of entire years.

One of only two known examples of a 1928 Harrington’s Ice Cream card with the image of baseball player Earl Smith, est. $10,000-$20,000. Morphy Auctions image.

Also crossing the auction block are baseball coins, tobacco cards and various-era baseball cards, including an extremely rare 1928 Harrington’s Ice Cream redemption card with the image of baseball player Earl Smith. Other standout cards feature Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio. There are also some fine lots of graded and ungraded cards from the 1950s through present day. Also, a big selection of unopened wax boxes and cases include baseball, basketball and hockey cards.

Always-popular player-endorsed items include a Jackie Robinson doll in the original box and a very scarce circa-1930 Babe Ruth brass locker tag. In summary, the sports section runs the gamut from sports-related advertising signs and Major League memorabilia to coveted autographed items, which include letters of authenticity.

All forms of bidding will be available for the Dec. 17 auction, including live in the gallery, absentee, by phone, or live via the Internet through Morphy Live or LiveAuctioneers.com.

For additional information about the coins, e-mail dan@morphyauctions.com. For questions pertaining to sports memorabilia, e-mail tom@morphyauctions. To reach the gallery, call 717-335-3435.

SOUTHAMPTON, Pa. – An old-fashioned American Christmas traditionally includes a statuesque, fragrant tree, topped by either an angel or star and accompanied by a vintage toy train that chugs energetically around its base to announce that Santa has arrived.

Finding the perfect train to complete the classic holiday scenario is as easy as bidding in Stephenson’s Dec. 16 auction, which contains hundreds of classic loco/tenders, boxed sets and coveted accessories by Lionel, American Flyer and other revered names. Nearly all of the train lots have come from three multi-generational estates in the Greater Philadelphia area.

Selections from the approximately 75 lots of European and American dolls and group lots of doll clothing, dishes and reference books. Stephenson’s image.

“Our business is based on auctioning contents of estates or homes whose owners are downsizing,” said Cindy Stephenson, owner of Stephenson’s Auctioneers. “We set aside the best toys and trains from those estates to offer in specialty sales held a few times a year. The pre-Christmas train and toy session is always very popular with collectors.”

The Friday, Dec. 16 Dolls, Trains & Toys auction, which will start at 2 p.m. Eastern time, opens with approximately 75 doll lots, including antique and vintage examples of both European and American manufacture. The selection features German bisque-head and composition dolls, a Shirley Temple doll in a middy dress, Barbies, a Skookum Native-American doll with papoose, a Mori Mora Bros. character doll, and groupings of miniature dolls. Doll clothing and dishes, and doll reference books round out the section.

“Collectors will appreciate that many of the train sets are boxed and that an enormous selection of accessories will be available, as well,” said Stephenson. The comprehensive array includes numerous bridges, signals, crossing gates, platform buildings and figures, which will be apportioned into group lots. Highlights among the accessories include an excellent and always sought-after Lionel standard gauge No. 444 roundhouse section, a No. 124 station and two No. 913 illuminated bungalows.

The toy box at Stephenson’s will be brimming with boys’ toys of all types from the pre- and postwar eras. A Buddy ‘L’ pressed steel Railway Express truck with all original paint is in “good to very good” condition. Another vintage piece is the Keystone parking garage and gas station.

Britains figurines, both military and civilian types. Stephenson’s image.

The toy lineup continues with slot cars (including Aurora), pond boats, an abundance of Britains civilian and military figures, and a scale-model remote-control helicopter. Numerous scale model cars produced by Danbury Mint and Franklin Mint are also part of the colorfully varied toy mix.

Stephenson’s Friday, Dec. 16 Dolls, Trains & Toys auction will take place at the company’s gallery located at 1005 Industrial Blvd., Southampton, PA 18966. The session will begin at 2 p.m., with a two-hour preview from 12 noon till commencement of sale. There will be ample onsite parking and a food and beverage concession at the venue. For additional information on any lot in the sale, call Cindy Stephenson at 215-322-6182 or e-mail info@stephensonsauction.com.

Features the complete works of the celebrated travel poster artist Roger Broders, whose name is synonymous with French Art Deco. Not only is this the first time that all of Broders work, including previously unknown variants and non-travel images, has come to auction, it is the first time the complete works of any poster artist have been offered at one time. The posters comprise an outstanding private collection that is remarkable for its range and for the fine condition of most of the pieces.

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